Tinkering and building stuff is in my blood. For much of my life, I’ve worked on my own projects by myself, but for the last couple of years I’ve wanted to be part of something bigger, with a grander purpose. A few months ago, I joined MakeIt Labs​ in Nashua, and it’s been a great experience. While we have some amazing toys and tools like a laser cutter, a plasma cutter, and 3D printers, what really makes the place special is the membership. A community of bright, energetic, and fun people make the Labs a great place to hang out, work on projects, and to teach and learn.

MakeIt Labs has enjoyed healthy, steady growth for almost 5 years, and with close to 100 members, we’re currently bursting at the seams. We desperately need a larger facility, with better separation of quiet and loud activities, with dedicated classroom space. We have the opportunity to move to a new space a stone’s throw from our current location. The building is roughly triple the size, giving us a lot of room to grow, and will allow us to teach classes more effectively, provide even better tools, and offer richer opportunities for our members and the community at large.

The building is owned by the city, and has been unoccupied for several months. Vandals and thieves have since broken in and stolen all of the plumbing, expensive parts of the heating/AC system, some of the electrical wiring, and have generally trashed the place. The building needs work within the next 60 days to bring it up to code so we can get an occupancy permit. The city is offering us an unbelievable deal on the rent for 5 years, but we’ll need to front the money for the repairs and remodeling work ourselves. This is potentially a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for us, and we’re doing everything we can to make it a reality.

This is where you can help. We’ve started an IndieGoGo fund raising campaign to help raise the money it will take for us to repair the damages, as well as adapt the space for our needs. Please take a look at our campaign and watch the video (which I helped produce), and please consider helping us out.